Once Upon A Time
by sakunade
Summary: Set in an alternate universe where the Fire Nation has won and has a vast empire throughout the nations. The resistance is slowly building up with the hope that the Avatar is ready to face the challenges ahead and defeat the Fire Nation Empire. But is he?


Thought I disappeared? I'm back with this gem of a story that I figured you guys might find interesting. This was written a couple of months back w/ the intent of flushing out this big idea in my head about an alternate universal setting w/ the characters. It feels all western, which I did on purpose, and I found it fun to toy with this idea. I want to continue it and I probably will so, expect some updates on this in the future!

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_Part I_

He sat near a half worn-out table by the window of a half worn-out place. The entire bar consisted of all types of fellas and alcohol and as he sat there, watching people come in and out of the place he thought to himself what people would think of him if they knew who exactly he was. To make sure that never happened though, he kept himself at a low profile. He let his hair grow out into a shaggy mane with bangs covering the slight traces of his heritage on his forehead, and only wore either turtlenecks or shirts with long sleeved collars, and slacks. Sneakers and dress shoes at all times.

Aang loves his heritage but for the sake of the world he has to hide every single aspect of it. The world was in chaos now with the Fire Nation taking over and conquering as much territory as they could grab. It's been years and years now since the wars started and now that it was over with the enemy in clear victory, most people have reserved themselves into living under the new regime. There were some, however, who fought and put their lives on the line to bring back independence and that's whom he was meeting with today. He's been a part of the underground resistance ever since he learned of his identity as the Avatar at the age of sixteen. Now, four years later, the resistance had gained enough man power and intelligence to finally take down the empire of Fire. That, along with Aang's four years of training the elements should be enough.

He could never admit to the others but he was afraid. What if he wasn't good enough? Something could go wrong and then all of their planning would be wasted. However, he was also confident in the fact that he had an assortment of grand elemental masters and that despite his short comings with only having four years to use to master his bending abilities; he knew he was a pretty good bender. "Just how good is enough..." he mumbled to himself.

It was then that his concentration was distracted by the melodic sound that emerged from the jukebox. He turned his attention towards the jukebox at the end of the hall and found himself concentrating on something else. She caught his eye with the hypnotic sway of her hips moving back and forth to the rhythm. Her hair was long and brown, with the ends touching and tickling the skin on the small of her back. She turned around and he instantly knew who she was. She, too, noticed him and gave him a smile in return.

His breathing got caught up in his chest and his heart began to pound heavily. The music didn't even matter anymore to him as it was no longer coherent within his ears. All he could see was the vision of her coming closer and closer.

He wonders to himself if she knew exactly what she did to him each and every moment they spent time together. She sat on a chair next to him, crossed her legs, and then leaned her elbows on the table. "I can see that you haven't changed much." She said to him with a smile and a laugh that seemed to echo through his very being.

He snapped out of his trance and joined her in reality. "I...guess not." He replied back in a disdained tone.

She placed her hand on top of his and he swore she did that deliberately. "Don't say it like that." She almost spoke in a whisper which made him instantly go nuts. "What I said was a good thing you know."

He nodded. "It has been awhile, hasn't it?"

"It has. It's been almost a year, now."

Aang couldn't help but notice that she still had her hand on top of his and he wasn't sure whether she was aware of it or not but her thumb suddenly began to stroke the back of his hand. "How was it?" He asked her to try and distract himself from her touch.

She looked to her left and then to her right before replying in a low voice. "You know we can't talk about that here." Then he felt a cool air on his hand and noticed that she had moved her hand to her pockets to pull out a small envelope. She passed it to him discreetly and he took the small envelope and placed it inside his pocket. "That has all the information and things that you need. I'll call you for the next meeting."

She was about to leave but before she could Aang reached out and held her wrist. She turned back and he looked up at her and said, "Is that all?"

She looked back down at him and nodded. "Yeah," she replied weakly. "That's pretty much all for now" She tried to walk away again but was stopped once more by his hold. She turned around again and he tried his best not to pour his heart out all over the place.

He stared at her for a minute or so before he spoke again. "I..." he swallowed hard, trying his best to say the simplest of things during the hardest of times."I...well..."

Despite being only a couple of years older than him, Katara could not help reverting back to her teenage self when she finally looked him in the eye and noticed what made him swallow so hard. She blushed when she felt his grip loosen up and one of his fingers trailing up her arm and then to her elbow, his gaze never leaving hers.

"I missed you." She finally says.

Her confidence gave him confidence in return. "I-I missed you so much."

"I know." She whispers.

"If you knew..." the hand that was holding her went loose and she did not expect him to be so brave as to place that hand on her hip, feeling her skin from the surface of her skirt. She was used to repressing emotions now, as part of her training for the resistance but when it came to him...

All the years of training suddenly disappeared and she found herself back to square one.

"I'm sorry I took so long."

"It's okay." He answers back to her his hand now free and roaming through his mane, being careful not to expose any glimpses of the arrow tattoo. "I know you have your responsibilities. I shouldn't be thinking so selfish."

She stood there; face half covered with a blush and then sat down when she felt herself crashing back down. "I don't blame you for feeling like that sometimes. I almost feel just as bad, seeing as, well..."

He nodded. "I understand. My responsibilities are just as, if not, greater than yours."

"They're greater. Mine are nothing compared to yours."

He sat there in silence and the music began to seep into his ears again. He closed his eyes and a sigh escaped through his lips. The weight of the world never felt so heavy until now.

"Are you scared?" she asks him.

He opened his eyes and he wanted to lie so very badly but he knew that she would eventually figure him out. Thus was the nature of their relationship. After all, she was his first teacher and she knows every crook and cranny in him by now.

Aang looked outside the window and said, "Yeah."


End file.
